


Corvitale

by ConscientiousMonster



Category: Original Work
Genre: Abuse, Birds, Crow - Freeform, Drowning, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Family Drama, Gen, Graphic depiction of violence may be an overstatement, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, It's more of just mentioned that someone gets hurt, Kidnapping, Magpie, Miscommunication, Parental Abuse, Past Abuse, Puppets, Raven - Freeform, Suicide Attempt, Torture, Wing torture, furry birds, light vs dark, pigeon - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-04
Updated: 2019-09-02
Packaged: 2020-10-05 17:24:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 19,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20492507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ConscientiousMonster/pseuds/ConscientiousMonster
Summary: In a world where birds live happy lives and bask in the shine of their loving maker, one little pigeon finds himself a stranger to happiness. In his attempt to seek out the fate he believes he deserves - he ends up in a bad place.But suddenly, things around him don't seem as black and white as he thought.





	1. Illustrations

I thank my dear beta readers for letting me know all the typos, and the fact that they kept reading the tale and imagining the characters to be literal Earthly birds. 

So here's what the main character look like, to avoid confusion:. 

Thank you for taking your time to look at my arts. I hope you like the tale. 


	2. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Originally I intended to name the tale "Corvidied". To make a more alike sounding pun to Corvidae.  
Well, the tale did keep the qualities that this name suggested.  
In this chapter Corvi dies.

It was Corvi's birthday. Everyone came. He didn't invite anyone, but everyone came nonetheless.

The young bird suspected it was Jaden who invited everyone over. His best friend from childhood was a bird of endless kindness and thoughtfulness. Corvi didn't have the heart to tell him that he didn't want a party on that day. So he tried to avoid most of the guests, spare for Jaden and Virgi.

Jaden was his most trustworthy friend for a long time and Virgi was the most adorable little crow he had ever seen. They all raised her since she was merely an egg and all loved her like the child of the company.

Virgi always acted younger than her age. She had the face of a 14 year old kid, but with the wings and the tail of a crow. Jaden was more mature compared to her, having a body of a full grown human, with the wings and the tail of the magpie. And if he was a colour - Corvi himself would be the grey colour, complete with his grey pigeon wings.   
Although, comparing their kind to humans was quite weird, as humans were only ever rumoured to walk the land long before. Legends had it they couldn’t even fly. It was not likely they lived on the mountains like the modern day birds did. If they existed at all… 

Corvi sat on the branch next to his nest. Virgi and Jaden watched him from afar. Virgi was bouncing up and down,   
"I can't believe he forgot to tell us about his birthday! We could have missed the party or forgotten to bring him gifts!"

"I think he meant not to yell anyone," the magpie replied. "He hasn't told anyone, but he's been really down lately."

"Huh? How do you know?" Virgi tilted her little head in curiosity.

"I've been seeing him a lot. He's not as cheerful as he used to be, but he never speaks about it." Jaden perched his head on his hand. "I wish he knew that we're here for him..."

"Well let's go and tell him that!" The little crow flapped her wings. "Let's go and tell him he can cry with us."

"It's not that easy. It's not about what we tell him. It's all about how he feels."

The two birds joined their friend on his branch.

"Oh hey." Corvi put on a smile immediately. "Nice party over there, eh? Why aren't you guys having fun there?"

"We wanna be here...with you."

"And we wanted to talk." Jaden placed his hand on Corvi's shoulder. He saw his wings twitch momentarily, but when no other sign of discomfort was shown, kept it there.

"We know you've been depressed."

"Me? Oh, uhm, no, sorry? I haven't been."

"It's okay. We're not- listen, I know what it may feel like. But I assure you - you're not a "bother" to us with your problems. We care about you. And we want to help you."

"Yeah! You're our bestest friend! You two are some of my favourite dads!"

The two birds glanced at the little crow with confusion in their eyes.

"What? Everyone around seems to adopt me. I'm used to it."

"She's right, nonetheless. You make her happy. You make me happy. We want to repay you the favour."

"Aww, you guys." Corvi smiled softly. "I'm fine, I promise. But thanks, I appreciate it."

Jaden sighed deeply at his words. He knew something was up with his friend, but he also knew he couldn't push it. There had to be another way to comfort his friend. So he got an idea - he would set an example himself, and may be that would encourage his friend?

"That's... good to hear. So then... do you mind if I ask you two for help?"

A little less than a second later Virgi was already hugging Jaden, and Corvi nodded, ready to listen. Jaden stepped back a little, and sat down deeper in the shadows. The two sat around him.

"I can't express, if I wanted to, how happy I am today. I'm living in the sunlight and basking in the love that Uliana shines upon all of her creations every day. She made so many of us, and yet she was generous enough to spare her love for... the children of the dark as well." Jaden held his hands on his sides, seemingly giving himself a little hug, or trying to shield from something he was about to mention. "This life is nothing like living with Raven was. He treated every one of his creations like a shadow minion, no more. I sure felt no different from the rest. He beat us all the same. He made us all feel miserable the same. He- He told us all that we deserved this pain the same, and should have been thankful. He made us live in his hell where he was the devil..."

Jaden took a pause, before his voice returned to normal and stopped stuttering.

"I'm here now. And I know my worth. And it's thanks to all of you that I'm in the light now. But... sometimes... sometimes I still think that I don't deserve it. Sometimes I think - may be he was right when called me stupid, and beat me because..."

"Because he was a bad person!" the little crow interrupted. "Bad people do it because they feel like it! None of it was ever your fault."

"You don't get it," was the unintentionally sharp reply that cut her off. "It can be hard to understand that you deserved better, even years after escaping abuse..."

Corvi reached his hands and Jaden accepted a hug from him. He held into his friend, whispering that he was sorry quietly. Virgi completed the hug from the other side, effectively sandwiching their friend with love and appreciation.

"I'm just glad that I eventually learned that I never deserved any of what I went through. And I'm glad I learned to reach out. It wasn't easy, but it... saved me so many times."

Having done this obvious part, the magpie looked at the grey pigeon expectantly. But Corvi only smiled more and said that he was glad for him.

So, the attempt didn't work.

The rest of the evening ensued normally.

It was late at night when every bird started to hurry home.

"So, let's meet tomorrow and go for a fly all together?"

"Sure."

"Great!"

It was only when the magpie and the crow were flying away, that Virgi suddenly stopped mid air.

"Oh my gosh!"

"What? Uliana?"

"What? Oh, no, I mean - I totally forgot to give him my present! I'm an awful friend!" Virgi lamented.

"Hey, hush. It's alright. Fly back. I'll wait here."

"Aww, gee, thanks man."

Virgi flew back in a hurry. It took her so long to catch a peacock off guard and steal their tail feather, and after all she forgot to bring the gift of her risky labour to he friend! What sort of friend was she after that, she thought to herself. When she arrived back, she didn't find anyone else present, and all the lights were out.

Something told her not to call out in the dark. Something wrong could have heard her. Bad things hid in the dark. She slowly made her way through the dark corridors of branches, looking for her friend…

Corvi stood on the edge of a long, long branch. The words of his friend still rang in his ears. The words of what the Raven was capable of.

It was bad that Jaden suspected his sadness, but at least he would be able to tell others that it was no one's fault. Corvi knew of abuse. It was rooted deep inside of him, deeper than he knew. It was a snake that coiled its body around his neck and tied harder every time he tried to mention it. It suffocated him.

Jaden surely deserved better. Virgi always had it good, and deserved it good. Everyone around deserved it good.

But Corvi never felt like he was the one who deserved better.

They always said to keep quiet.

They always said he was bad.

They always said he was a burden.

And Corvi took their words for it, over the words of love and support of his true friends.

Virgi saw him from afar. She said nothing, planning to spook her friend.

But as she approached closer - she grew more and more worried. Corvi was looking down very... somberly.

Virgi switched from walking to running, then flapped her wings and launched herself at her friend.

"Corvi!"

But Corvi let go of the branch he was holding onto, and folded his wings.

He fell down, with his eyes closed, through the giant leaves and sticky branches.

"Corvi!!!"

Virgi flew after him. But it was much harder for her to catch up. Corvi let himself slide down after every bump, while Virgi struggled to avoid every branch. Eventually she lost sight of him.

She screamed for her friend one more time, crying loudly, as she realised she had ventured very low into the woods…

The woods. The woods grew all around the mountain they all lived at. But deeper down, below their homes, the trees were darker. And the rumour said that deep down enough, where the light would never reach, only scary shadows roamed the dark places.

Scary shadows and the devil himself…

Virgi flew back up as fast as she could.

Jaden caught up to the place by then, unsure why was it taking so long for her to gift Corvi her present, although he hoped it was because he decided to vent to her.

He was quite worried when Virgi showed up full of thorns and leaves, and crying her eyes out.

Jaden helped her climb to a safer place, held her and asked what happened.

But she only cried more in reply.

"Corvi died..."

~ ~ ~

Consciousness slowly returned to Corvi. He found himself surrounded by shadows. They were birds like him, but fully black. They chatted and chirped in a circle around him.

To his surprise Corvi tried to move, and found that his bones weren't broken, for the most part. But he was in pain. Some part of him started to doubt if this way really what he wanted…

He looked around.

It was dark. Nothing was visible. Even when his vision adjusted he could barely tell appear silhouettes of the shadow birds and some trees. The ground was very moist below him. It smelled of moist in the air. Tiny openings in the trees shone just a bit of light into the scenery, but very very little light.

Corvi didn't think he was dead - he felt very alive in fact. He was feeling dead and numb for a long while, and now that he actually did what he had planned - it didn't make him feel at ease.

It made him feel scared.

Suddenly the birds quieted down.

They all stepped aside, letting someone else walk up to him.

Heavy steps sounded on the moist grounds.

Corvi turned his face from the ground. And he watched as a big dark figure approached.

Two strong claws stopped right beside him and two angry, empty white eyes stared down from what seemed to be a walking darkness itself.

Before the birdie could react, sharp talons cut into his neck, and he was lifted off the ground by a strong hand clutching his neck so hard that he bled.

"A bird of the light..." the deep voice growled at him with a hint of surprise in its tone.

"The Raven..." Corvi coughed in a whisper. It now sunk in to him just how much he had misjudged everything Jaden had said about him.

The Raven stood taller than any other bird Corvi had ever seen, only close in height to Uliana of the light's domain.

But Uliana was the maker of all the birds of the light.

And the Raven ruled the underworld, where her creations would only fall to their deaths. Usually they would die, and the Raven would bring them back as his own mindless shadows.

But Corvi hadn’t died.

The Raven laughed at his catch, his voice sending shivers down the spines of all the shadow birds surrounding the two.

"Her living creation. In my domain!"

He dropped Corvi back to the floor, then roared at the other birds to make noise, and make way.

The Raven flew up, grabbing Corvi's wings with his claws, and flew deeper into the dark woods.

Corvi didn't get where he was being taken to, or that he was being carried somewhere at all - the pain in his wings took his mind off everything else.

Then he felt himself being thrown somewhere, and heard something above him locking up. Corvi looked up from where he now laid.

It was the carcass of some big, dead animal. An animal so big, the ribcage bones of it reached high and locked around at the top.

Corvi grabbed onto one of them. His little cage smelled of rotting meat. He wanted to throw up from the smell.

"You are in for a life of suffering and misery," the Raven said, perching over the bones and looking down at his next prey predatorily.

It's been a long while since a living bird made it there.

He will savour everything - every scream he will get out of this one. Every bone he will break. Every scar he will make.

Raven knew so. Raven decided so.

The Raven left him alone in the dark soon soon.

This wasn't exactly what Corvi envisioned. He wanted to follow his self destructive impulses, but somehow he didn't think it would actually... hurt him. It smelled awful in his little cage. Everything around was pitch black darkness. Spare for the occasional shadow birds who would fly by, or stop to see the newest catch, to stare at him uncomfortably for quite a while.

Rarely the Raven would be seen flying by. Only his two white eyes would shine in the utter darkness that this part of the mountain was perpetually enveloped in.

It smelled damp in the air. Damp, wet, and of the dead plants and animals. Of rotting flesh and of the fish that would meet its demise on the shores.

Corvi had noticed that not all ground was solid around there. Most of it was... liquid. It was a strange black liquid. The silence he was imprisoned in was broken when a bird caught its wings in the black waters. It struggled and screamed and made noise and splashes.

And then it made no more noise.

And then all was quiet.

~ ~ ~

"We have to go back and get him!" Virgi tried to break free of being held back by her friend.

"I want to believe he's okay too. But we... we can't just go there."

"Then we'll go tell Uliana, she'll help us get him, she can go there! She's stronger than the Raven, everyone says that!"

Jaden tried again to make his little friend sit still for a minute.

"We don't need to tell her. I don't think she'll... take her time to save one bird anyways. She has so many to watch after..."

"But Corvi is important!"

"She has a lot of important birds..."

"But Corvi is the most important!" Virgi jumped up, before landing down and finally standing still for a second. When she calmed, she added "The most important to me..."

Jaden kneeled down to level with her. Her tears hadn’t dried yet. The older bird placed his hand on her head softly. Then he held himself.

"...I'm sorry. I'm just... afraid. I'm afraid to see him again."

Virgi pouted, but she realised she couldn't push her friend where it would hurt him to go. At that moment she felt so helpless and alone in the world…

She shut her eyes. Then she clenched her fists and said slowly, meaning every word:

"Then I will go there alone and pull him back to the light all by myself if I have to."

Her confidence soared so high up, even while she cried, that it made Jaden look away, embarrassed. No, he should have known better. This was about his friend, his close friend, and he would go to the depths of the darkness for him. That's what friends do.

"Alright. We will go there together. Let's hurry."

Virgi looked up at him, not believing his words at first. Then she jumped up and hugged him, showing a shallow smile though her tears.

Then they set off to save their friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay well maybe not in this one.


	3. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh right, okay, my bad.   
In _ this _ chapter Corvi dies.

Corvi sat with his knees tucked up to his chest, hiding his head. This went wrong, horribly wrong. This wasn't what he wanted. He just wanted to disappear. Now he would be hurt, and even worse - now he'll have others looking for him, why didn't he think of that? Of course his friends will worry. But maybe they would forget him soon...? 

Corvi shook his head. No, this type of thoughts is what got him into this mess in the first place. He couldn't give in again... 

But maybe it didn't matter? Maybe no one would come looking for him. Who would even need him, after all, to whom he was of use? 

The pigeon shook his head and tried to stand up to escape, but hit his head soon enough against the rib cage. He couldn't stand up to his full height here. And the smell, that foul smell still made him want to throw up. But then he'd be trapped there for Uliana knows how long with his own... 

Uliana. She would sense where he is. She'd come for him. Would she be mad? Would she think that the Raven stole him, or would she know that Corvi fell there himself? Will she even bother to save him, if she finds out he wanted to disappear? 

Corvi would have probably pondered on all those painful guesses for a long time, but he heard someone approaching.

The shadow birds started to gather around a small circled area, chattering. Corvi could not help but feel like they were always judging him. And it was the worst. 

Something shook his cage - it was the Raven landing on the top bone from a high dive, almost shattering the bone with his claws. He moved two of them apart and grabbed the top of Corvi's head by his hair, pulling the wounded bird up. Corvi just now realised his wings were too damaged from the fall for him to fly, as he tried to flap them to not be dragged up by his head alone, but it proved to be ineffective. 

The Raven threw him to the damp ground. Then he jumped down - it was a millisecond that the pigeon needed to realise that he was the landing point, so he jumped out of the way. He tried to get up and stand, discovering more and more damage that he previously wasn't aware of. 

Why did he have to do this to himself? 

Corvi held his damaged hand, keeping himself low from the pain, as he stepped back with every advance that the Raven made towards him. He could see that the big bird was smiling wide, but had the white eyes filled with cold and evil. He couldn't help but look at them - it was the only direct source of light in the darkness. 

Corvi kept stepping backwards until he felt that he could walk no more with those injuries, and he fell down, now crawling away. 

The Raven picked up another bone that was sticking out of the ground as he walked. It was some sort of a sharp talon. The little pigeon realized soon enough, that had the Raven wanted to kill him - he would have done so earlier. So this tool was picked to bring more pain. 

Corvi whined. He was in the middle of the ring now, completely surrounded by the chattering darkness of shadows, and alone with the foe.

The Raven stepped his claw on Corvi's tail, leaving the little birdie nowhere to run. Corvi tried to cover his head and chest, but it wasn't what he should have worried about. 

He felt a piercing pain in his right wing, as the Raven nailed it down to the ground with the sharp bone. It bled, it bled and the blood mixed with the dirt and moist, and the air filled with screams. 

The Raven withdrew his weapon, smiling at his work. Now this bird was going nowhere anytime soon. He raised the talon high to aim it at his other wing - and suddenly felt it snatched right out of his hands. 

Who  _ dared?  _

The shadow birds looked up, just in time to see two birds of the light circling around them. The smaller one - who snatched the talon - stopped and tried to aim it back at the Raven. But the other bird didn't seem to see it, and bumped into her, throwing off her aim. The talon landed impaling the ground, just nearby Corvi. 

"Capture them!" The Raven roared to his minions, and suddenly a whirl of the pure black flew up and rushed at the two birds. Corvi watched helplessly.

The swarm was fast and swallowed the two birds quick and deep. It returned to circling around the two, but two big black birds now held the two intruders before the Raven. 

The Raven laughed, 

"Your friends have come to save you. How adorable." 

He stepped off the smaller bird's tail, and grabbed the talon from the ground. 

Corvi got up, he couldn't dare look at his friends. Because of him, they came all the way down to save him, and because of him they were now captured and... 

"Corvi," Virgi said softly. She was just glad that he was alive. She saw the bleeding wing, she heard his screams, and she felt so bad she could not help him. But at the moment, she only felt glad that he was alive. 

Jaden tried not to look at anyone at all, he was looking at the ground. His breathing was ragged. But when Virgi spoke he could feel what she meant by a single word. And he softly looked at his friend too. 

Corvi worried more and more before daring to look at his friends and seeing... soft impressions. He expected to see disappointment and rage so clearly, and yet... he couldn't understand why were they only looking concerned and almost caring. 

"Let's play a little game since they're here." 

The Raven broke the idyllic atmosphere. He approached Corvi with the talon, causing both birds of the light to worry and struggle in their holds. 

"Don't you dare touch him!" Virgi raised her little voice.

The Raven stopped in his track momentarily and turned to look her dead in the eyes with his hollow ones, while he reached to hold Corvi by the neck and made a wide scar across his back. 

Jaden looked away, he knew what was to come. Virgi screamed more, but eventually got quieter when she realised the more she spoke - the more the Raven would hurt her friend. Then she only sobbed quietly. 

The Raven pushed Corvi to stand between the two. 

"You want them to live, don't you? I'm feeling kind..." the Raven gave a wicked smile. "One of them may leave here alive. The other - you will have to kill by yourself." 

With that the Raven gave him the talon, and pushed towards the two terrified birds.

Corvi fidgeted the weapon awkwardly, completely at a loss of what to do.

"Listen to me," Jaden whispered, "I lived here before, I can take it again. But she won't. She won't handle it here, she's too pure. I'll be fine, make...make her go." 

"No!" Virgi screamed at the two. "I didn't come here to leave you again! I'm not leaving you behind. Even- even if you do it- I won't go away, I'll stay here, I won't leave you two behind either!" 

"You can't help him now. You need to run, you..." Jaden was trying hard not to raise his voice above a whisper. The Raven started to stare at him strangely and his heart pounded in his chest. "You can go find Uliana and ask her to help." 

"So can you! I'm not leaving a friend behind." 

The two birds around Corvi continued to argue as to who should go and who should... stay. Behind him, the Raven stood awaiting his next prey to fall into his claws. Around them, all around they were surrounded by the birds as black as the night. 

Corvi couldn't handle it. It was too much, it overwhelmed him. The voices got louder. He never wanted this. The voices around him screamed. He never wanted the trouble for his friends. The voices were angered. He never thought his friends would come for him. The voices roared. He never wanted pain to anyone, but himself. The voices repeated after him. But himself... 

Corvi looked at the talon in his arms. 

His eyes sparkled for a second. 

Then gripped it as hard as he could and impaled himself in the middle of the chest. The breath escaped his lungs, and he fell down to the cold ground.

And then all was quiet.

Everything went silent for a second. Then the Raven let out a hellish roar. 

All the shadow birds puffed their feathers up in fear. 

Virgi stood in shock with her mouth open, neither was she breathing. Jaden took the opportunity, he stepped on the claw of the bird that was holding him with his own claw. The bird screeched too, and it was drowned out by the others. Jaden grabbed Virgi and flew up as fast as he could. 

"W-wait, we..." 

"We can't help him now, Virgi. I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." 

As the darkness grew closer and closer, Jaden hurried and flew fast like he had only flown once in his life before. He flew through the leaves and branches, bringing Virgi closer and covering her with his own head. Virgi held onto her friend, crying louder now and keeping her eyes closed. She couldn't stop seeing the scene she saw before her eyes... 

And then Jaden stopped in the air. 

Virgi opened her eyes, and saw the light. She saw the light of their homes. She wished she didn't. 

~ ~ ~

The Raven picked up the lifeless body from the ground, screaming at it. "How  _ dare _ you? No one disobeys me. No one... no one escapes me! Not anymore!" 

He threw the bird into the middle of the circle. Then came closer, rolling Corvi on his back and spreading his limbs apart. 

"No one dies so long they are of use to me." 

Raven knew how to turn a dead bird into a living shadow. But this once, just this once, he did something different. 

He pulled the talon out, letting the blood pour our. The shadow birds flew up and circled the two, one by one they started to chant an eldritch saying, their chanting soon turning into a weird dysharmonic song. 

The Raven soaked his hands in his blood, then pressed his hands together on the wound. A faint little light shined from below his dark palms. He chanted along his minions. Then he withdrew his hands. 

If there was any light to be shined on Corvi right now, it would show that he now had a black mark on his body, where the wound was. 

But the wound was not there anymore. 

Finally, the Raven picked a shattering leaf from nearby, filled it with a bit of the black water from nearby, and poured it on the smaller bird. 

Something got into Corvi's mouth. 

And then all was quiet.

But then the pigeon coughed his way back to life.

Corvi sat up in shock.

The Raven allowed a minute for the recent events to catch up to him. The smaller bird placed a hand on his chest, where he had impaled himself previously, and was astonished to feel nothing - no wound. Just his feathers. And some sort of black liquid that hopefully wasn't blood. The bird looked around again. Looked at his hands. He was sound of mind. But how? Usually the shadow birds were known to turn into mindless puppets. This couldn't have been what that felt like. In his confusion, Corvi finally looked up at the Raven. 

Immediately he was picked up into the air by the throat.

"How  _ dare _ you disobey my order." 

"I..? I!" Corvi wasn't sure whether to reply or to ponder on the fact that he was still alive. But he knew he was greatly disappointed that he was. 

The Raven shook him back and forth.

"In my domain - no one disobeys me. My word is the law. And you..." It was the moment he brought the bird down below, forcing Corvi to crouch on his knees before him, while his hands helplessly tugged at the hand around his neck. "I will show you what happens to the birds who don't respect me." 

The shadow birds flew in circles and screamed, but soon they started to calm down and land back down in the circle. They watched. The Raven turned the pigeon around and threw to the ground, putting his claw on his back to keep him there as pulled out the feathers from his wings, one by one, leaving behind barely any fluff. And then he did something worse to him. Soon Corvi's screams were the only sounds filling the air. 

When Raven was done with him he threw the bird aside, Corvi was now bleeding from his wounded wings. 

"Welcome to your new life. I'll be your personal devil!" The Raven wiped his hands from the blood that got on them, then laughed. Laughed and laughed, looming over the poor bird like a thunderstorm approaching an innocent and unprepared village.

Down on the ground Corvi curled in pain. He used to want pain. But now, more than anything he wanted it all to stop. He wanted to go back and tell his friends what was hurting him, get help, and he wanted to never have followed his self destructive thoughts in the first place. He wanted to go back, to get help, just like his friends said he deserved to. He wanted the time to go back. 

But it didn't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops.


	4. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This guy's kind of a sadist, huh.   
Warning for graphic description of violence and a character being a sadist in this one.   
Oh right, Corvi hasn't died. I'm sure he dies somewhere in this chapter...

The Raven landed next to the rib cage. By his calculations Corvi should have recovered by now. When the smaller bird continued to lay down and seemingly ignore him, the Raven threw a rock at him. 

Corvi made a pained sound, before sitting up to face the Raven from his knees. He rubbed the damaged area, looking down at the weirdly shaped rock that just hurt him so badly. 

The Raven traced his look. 

"Eat it." 

Corvi looked up in confusion. Surely, he didn't mean for him to... eat that rock. 

" _ Now _ ." Was added in a lower tone. 

Scared, the pigeon picked the rock, but out of fear rather than planning to actually fulfil the given order. 

"Eat it now, or I'll stuff it inside of you." Was the last given warning. 

After a second of hesitation, the Raven took a step towards the cage. 

Corvi cried, but realised the second threat was worse, and tried to drown out the common sense that told him not to bite into a rock, as he bit into it... 

It wasn't a rock. Whatever it was, it was rough and sharp, but it was somewhat edible, and eventually fell apart into smaller bits. The pigeon looked up at his tormentor, trying to read into those hollow eyes. Why would he do that? Something very twisted in the back of his mind felt thankful that he was actually given something edible, rather than tortured by being forced to eat rocks.

The next item that was thrown just a bit outside of his cage was a small leather flask. Corvi had to bend down and try hard to reach his hand between the bones for it. The Raven laughed watching the scenery unfold, and kicked the flask with his claw, more awkwardly out of his reach. 

When Corvi did eventually grab it into his hands and taste the contained liquid he almost threw up. 

"Drink it all up. Or your wound will open and you will bleed to death." 

Part of the pigeon thought it was a nice offer. He could use dying. But he quickly remembered that it only meant that the Raven would bring him back again, and will possibly be angrier than before. Corvi had enough since his first punishment. He had enough since he fell in there at all. 

He drank the dark liquid, coughing up from his gag reflex. Once he was done, the Raven snatched the empty flask from him, and left him alone in the darkness again.

~ ~ ~ 

Jaden sat in front of a small pond, watching his reflection for any left over leaves or branches. It was hard to tell apart, since his reflection was dark, very dark - he hit the water across, clenching his hand in a fist before jerking up and opening his palms. 

Behind him Virgi sat with her hands resting on her knees. She felt numb. She felt angry and sad and scared at the same time, and didn't even know how to handle it. So now she just felt numb. 

Suddenly, a ray of sunshine shone through the leaves. The area they were in lit up intensely, and once their eyes adjusted to it - they saw Uliana herself standing by them. 

A tall snow white bird in a golden dress and with a crown if vines, she looked down at her creations with her saddened blue eyes. She senses great sadness in them for a long time now, and decided it was time to pay a visit. 

"What's wrong, my children?" she asked in her echoing voice. 

Virgi was no stranger to her. Uliana sat by her side, and reached her hand around, placing it on her shoulder. She spread her wings, covering the small bird from behind. It made Virgi feel a little safer - it always did. 

The little crow looked at her and said, with a new wave of tears nearly approaching, 

"Corvi died." 

Then Virgi reached around and hugged the white bird. Uliana hugged her back, keeping her wide wings open around her. 

"What are you speaking of?" 

"Corvi fell down into the Raven's domain. But he was still alive - we think he may still be alive," Jaden started explaining, "But... he may not be. He... the Raven impaled him with a talon... that's the last we saw before we had to retreat." 

"You two came down?" 

"Yes. We had to try to save him. He's our friend... I'm sorry, we should have told you earlier." 

"I'm sorry, I- It was my idea to go and get him as fast as we could…," whined Virgi, still holding tightly onto Uliana.

"I see. I don't blame you, child. You followed your heart's call. Now, we are going to retrieve your friend, if he is still alive." 

Uliana stood up, bringing Virgi up with her. She patted the little crow on the head, telling her words of comfort and love. 

"Jaden, where did you last see him?" 

"Whom? Oh, in the middle of the center area, where the Raven usually gathers his shadow birds to...watch." 

"I see. Follow me." 

She took off, illuminating everything around her with her light. Virgi immediately followed, filled with hopes that it wasn't too late to save her friend after all. And Jaden flew after the two, a bit reluctant.

~ ~ ~ 

Deep inside of the dark domains, Corvi couldn't help but feel a weird scratching feeling across his chest. It was the strongest right where his wound should have been. Was it healing up? Or was something else taking place? He could not be sure. He had zero reasons to trust anything that the Raven had told him, about healing too. 

He still pondered - how come he wasn't a shadow bird by now? Did he not stab himself deep enough, or... was it the Raven who brought him back to life instead of making him a minion? But why would he do that? If he was even capable of it to begin with. 

Corvi laid down on the moist dirt, lost in his thoughts. He sought escape, but...this was not what he wanted. And now he had no escape. Death was not an option, and his friends wouldn't return for him for the second time, let alone bring any sort of help, or even Uliana...no, they wouldn't. Uliana loved the birds of the light. And Corvi felt foreign from it. Corvi felt like the bird of the dark his whole life. 

"Why would you say that? Are you stupid? You've screwed up. They got hurt because of you. You're unworthy. You're horrible. You're awful. You're a curse..." Blame and hatred, blame and hatred... he was not loved up there. 

Corvi sat up with his legs crossed, and placed his elbows on his knees, perching his head on his clasped hands. 

He wanted to escape one thing up there - hatred. All the judgement and all the abuse, he wanted to be free from it. 

So now he had to ask himself again - did he do that?

Death suddenly seemed like not the only option he had. The Raven may have wanted him to obey, but at least while he was surrounded by the shadow birds and the devil alone - there was no common sense to try to follow and fail at keeping up with. 

Corvi laughed. It was a short and stuttering sound, filled with madness. 

His sanity must have started to give up, if he started to look for and actually see the good of his situation. But was he wrong? He was no longer being told that he's the worst of all and unwanted here. In turn, whoever had brought him back to life - must have cared to or  _ needed _ to keep him alive and present. Corvi laughed more. And more. Then he fell back down on the ground, curled up into a small form, and cried.

~ ~ ~ 

The Raven sat over a rock in the middle of a dark dark pond, deep deep down in his dark thoughts. This wasn't cutting it, he wasn't feeling any better. Tormenting the small bird took his mind off his problems, but it didn't give him back what was taken from him. He growled. Nothing could ever amount to it, and yet he was forced to suck it up and stay low in the swamp, surrounded by darkness and pain, while the birds of the light basked in happiness and glory of their leader, with their fake little smiles and forced kindness... 

The Raven roared lowly. He thought something caught in his eye, but it wasn't just his vision or a tear. Everything around slowly started to light up, as a white bird appeared to be coming from above, followed by two of her minions. 

The Raven stood up and growled. He gave orders to the shadow birds besides him, then stood in place, clenching his fists in furry and ready to attack. 

"Who dares enter my domain?" 

Uliana descended down, hovering just a few feet above him, as she held her head high. 

"You took what is mine. Return my child," she said, her voice echoing through the dark. 

"Return your child?!" The Raven barked, before shooting at her. 

Uliana blocked his first attacks, crossing her arms or countering his advances, until the Raven flew back a few feet. 

"Where is Corvi?" 

"Somewhere you will never have him back from." 

The Raven pointed at her, causing every shadow bird that approached the fight scene by then to rush at her. 

Uliana spread her hands, reflecting the shadows as she shone brighter. Just a little behind her, Virgi and Jaden watched the clash of two titans unfold. 

"Release my son." 

"Come and get him. Come one, pick one of those shadows, it may as well be him." 

The Raven held his hands open, summoning up all the birds he had converted over the years to fill the area. 

Virgi held onto her friend. She couldn't help but admit to herself that she was seeing more shadows than there were living birds of the light above.

Uliana felt that. She felt hurt, for every single one of her creations that was taken from her. She crossed her arms, before unleashing a brighter ray of the light around herself, knocking every shadow back a few feet. 

Far away from the battle scene, Corvi laid curled up, his face hidden too neatly to notice the flashes of light, as he pondered on the thoughts that Uliana would never come for him there. 

While she spread her limbs, emitting the light around herself and her friends, she left herself exposed to damage, and the Raven saw that. He attacked swiftly, hitting her right in the middle of the stomach. 

Uliana lost her balance momentarily, but quickly regained her stance. Before the Raven knew it - she landed a hit back, sending him flying far behind and landing into the black muddy waters. He raised back up slowly, embarrassed and enraged more than before. 

The shadow birds rushed again, trying to land a single hit as they flew by their former maker. Uliana couldn't take the sight of her creations as those mindless puppets, those soulless husks that the Raven had turned them all into. She turned around, calling her two children to follow her quickly.

Virgi almost opened her mouth in protest, but Uliana quickly confirmed that they would return again, more prepared. 

The shadow birds followed them all the way until the trio had left the domain of the dark.

~ ~ ~ 

The Raven sat in front of a small opening of liquid. It wasn't the cleanest, but it did the job of washing away the dirt that Uliana had dumped him into. He clenched his fist and hit the water in front of him. How dare she. She held more power than he did, but did she not use it for evil when she hurt him? She was the true evil, yet no one saw that but the Raven. No one knew... 

The Raven shook his head and body dry. It caused his feathers to puff up, quite embarrassingly, but he quickly took care of that too. 

He flew back to the cage where he had left Corvi. At this rate he would need to relocate him, or next time he left him without guard and Uliana came down for a visit - she would find him. 

He picked up the unsuspecting little bird with his claws and flew off with him to the center of the swamp, which was marked by the tallest and the biggest tree around. The big, dark bird threw the pigeon into the hollow - throwing him so hard that it caused the little bird to hit against the back side of the tree and roll down. Then the Raven gracefully landed down before the pigeon.

To his own fascination, once Corvi could look around, he found that the hollow was lit up my an invisible source of light. It was lighter than his previous cage anyways, but still barely visible. 

Corvi whined in fear as the Raven approached him and grabbed his wings up for inspection. The feathers were missing, presumably too much feathers for him to fly were missing. He hoped so. 

Just for a check, the Raven threw him outside and followed down. In his panic Corvi tried to flap his wings, or what was left of them anyways, but it gave no result and he landed face first into a branch. He was quickly picked up by his "wings" and thrown back into the hollow after this test.

Landing back and satisfied with the result, The Raven held him against the wall by the neck. 

"Your precious little Uliana is a dirty liar," he spoke. "She could not give two shits about you. She'd never come here for you. And you should know that that's a good thing - she is an awful, awful, evil bird." 

Corvi wasn't sure what to think of this. He thought he was being tormented this way. He definitely felt bad for hearing this, although he was used to being abused into certain beliefs. But should he had spoken back, or...? 

"She's a heartless bitch with nothing holy."

"D-don't say that!" 

Finally, just what the bigger bird was looking for - a reason to hurt him. The Raven smiled with an evil smirk. He moved his hand closer, then back towards the wall fast, hitting the back of Corvi's head in the process. 

"She is a heartless bitch, and you will say it too."

"N-no... no..." 

Another hit. 

"I don't take "no" for an answer. You will do as you're told, or you will take another trip down this tree." 

Corvi needed very little time to reevaluate it all. The Raven clearly wasn't planning to kill him, but knew a thousand ways to hurt him without taking his life. And if Corvi wouldn't give in, he would be in for a ride that would take him through all of them. 

His breathing stuttered as he replied, 

"S...s... is a heartless... heartless..." He was whispering and mixing up words. 

Another light hit against the wall.   
"Use her name." 

Corvi didn't think when he spoke, 

"You're a heartless bitch!" 

The only thing that went by in his mind is that the Raven should have known he was wrong, from Corvi's point of view. Just like they should have had. A second later, he couldn’t even tell why he said that. He knew he always wanted to fight back against his abuse, but now, after he spoke, it seemed like a much less of a good idea to start talking back to the Raven. 

As for him, this was even better than if Corvi had given in all too quickly. The Raven tossed him aside, and flew away. Before Corvi could question why, he returned with a long woven vine in his hand. He gave it a whip, and it made a loud noise as it cut through the air sharply. 

The Raven was smiling wide in anticipation. 

And Corvi was crying.  
  
Nearly an hour later, Corvi was trying to hold onto the blood covered floor, flinching from any movement that he heard come from above him. His breathing was off, he was trying to calm down from hyperventilating, but it wasn't proving to be very successful when he was scared for every next second. 

And above him, the Raven was looming over like an eternal curse. He clenched the vine that was covered in blood tighter in his hand.   
The Raven sat down, watching the little bird hide his face. He folded the vine in his hand and used its top part to raise Corvi’s shivering head up and make him look him in the eyes. The little pigeon was filled with fear. 

"Say it." 

And then all was quiet. 

But then Corvi stuttered, somewhat through his pained breathing, defeated and broken, 

"U... Uliana is... a heartless... bitch..." 

The Raven groaned and threw his head back in the triumph of this little victory. 

Maybe after all, not everything that Uliana did to him was bad, because she made Corvi. 

And hurting Corvi made him feel ecstatic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess he doesn't.


	5. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, okay, I got it.   
In this chapter Corvi dies.

Shining helmets and armour lined the walls. Uliana picked out 20 strong birds - the strongest willed. Virgi and Jaden were among them. Attempts were made to stop Virgi from returning there, but they proved to be fruitless. The little crow wasn't letting go of her hopes to find her friend. She was determined as she put on a helmet, enchanted to protect her from being consumed by the dark. 

"I just wish I could save them all," spoke Uliana, "all those shadows were once my children... I can not break the seal of the Raven's curse. I can not help them now." 

"Maybe the reason the Raven filled his domain with the birds of the light is because we were too nice to welcome birds of the dark in here," theorized one of the preparing soldiers. 

"Halt. The Raven is the one who took from your families, would you really wish for any bird to stay there against their will? I do not steal. I welcome anyone who seeks shelter under my wings. And so long as there is hope that I can win back one more son of mine - I will do what it takes." 

Uliana walked past the armoured birds, putting on her own helmet. 

"It's time. Follow me." 

She flew up, and soon was followed by two branches of birds following her behind in a V formation, as she made her way down, leading her people... 

  
~ ~ ~

The Raven sensed it. He sensed her coming. He stood on the edge of the Big Tree's Hollow, squinting his eyes as he stared in the direction he knew Uliana was coming from. And he sensed that she wasn't alone. 

From behind him, Corvi very quietly made his way to the edge as well, trying to see what had caught his attention in the blind of the dark. He was just "fed" another portion of the dark liquid that he was secretly convinced was killing him slowly. So the pigeon was holding onto his stomach in pain, crouching down just a bit. 

The Raven couldn't care less about him right now. Once he sensed the danger coming, he spread his wide wings suddenly, and took off, creating a gust of wind in his wake. It knocked Corvi over the edge. 

The Raven flew towards the center, bringing all the shadows he had at his command to his aid. 

Uliana soared just above the dark liquid. As it was planned, she would now sense where was Corvi, and send his two friends to find him, while her people fought the Raven and his army. But as she listened into the life surrounding her... she couldn't sense him. 

"Where is my son? What have you done to Corvi?"

"None of your damn concern!" the Raven replied from the ground, clenching his fists. 

"I can not sense my child," she whispered to her children, then spoke on with him. "You stole my child." 

"You lying hypocritical bitch!" The black bird was losing his temper fast with her. "How dare you blame me for a single stolen soul, when you have stolen the child of my own?!" 

Having said that, the Raven commanded his birds to attack, launching himself to face off with Uliana one on one.

And so the fight began. 

The birds of the light fought the puppets of the dark. The armored birds had harpoons and tridents that they used to impale the shadow birds. But it proved ineffective as the shadows quickly patched themselves back, sometimes even while they were still impaled, as they tried to crawl closer to the warriors in a swarm of darkness. Virgi and Jaden were armored up, fighting right by Uliana's side, or in other words they weren't letting any other shadow birds distract her from fighting the Raven. They shouldn't have been doing that. They should have received the name of the location by now, and should have been on their way to save their friend, but Uliana wasn't saying anything. She wasn't sensing Corvi alive. 

"What have you done to my child?" she said in a low tone, blocking another attack from the Raven. 

"What? Hurts to lose your child to the enemy?" snarled the Raven, ducking down to evade her next attack. 

"I did not steal your child. Your son came to me by himself, seeking hospitality, and I welcomed him."

"You're lying!" The Raven's tactic became less focused, "He would have never left on his own accord! He would have never!"

"Why don't you ask him yourself." 

Uliana flew back, stopping right next to Virgi and Jaden. She knocked off Jaden's helmet, revealing him to the Raven. 

Jaden tried to catch his helmet and put it back on, but realised it was no longer of use. The Raven had seen him. Then Jaden hoped he at least wouldn't buy it, wouldn't believe it. More than anything Jaden just didn't even want Raven to know what he had grown to be since he left the dark underworld.

The Raven stared with hatred, balancing in the air with the sharp weapon in his hand. It couldn't have been, it couldn't have been that his own son returned to his domain - not just once - and each time as a bird of the light, looking to save his friend from him. And he never recognized him.

The Raven launched forth, stopping next to the shaking magpie. He had seen that there was something... familiar about him, ever since the first time... 

No, there could be no doubt. It was his son, Jaden. And he was here now, fighting alongside his enemy, the one who stole him from the Raven. And he had grown since the last time the Raven saw him.

"Your son had his own reasons to leave you. The reasons you gave him yourself. Do not blame me for your failure, Raven." 

As Uliana spoke, Jaden flew back, trying to keep a distance. He was terrified. It was the effect planted into him long ago - to know he had to be a certain way, and if he wasn't that way then he would be hurt until he did better. Virgi flew in front of her friend, shielding him. She thought she saw the Raven do a motion akin to reaching his hand out. Even if it was real, both of his hands quickly returned to wielding weapons - small sharp bones that the Raven kept hidden on him. He launched at Uliana, aiming to scar her face. It didn't seem to her that he was aware of her words. 

She used the moments that he spent looking at his son to her advantage, and now she knew what to do. She evaded his attack, as she told her soldiers to retreat, and that she would soon follow. Her soldiers listened to her will and one by one flew away, only her and the two familiar birds remaining fending the Raven off. Uliana managed to throw him into the moist ground again, and before he could raise back up, she landed next to him and spoke. 

"Is that what you want? Will you give me my son back, if I let yours have a choice of returning home?" 

Behind the two, Jaden held onto his heart suddenly. He felt scared that the one he thought would protect him had suddenly planned to betray him. The Raven only stared up at her, trying to comprehend the offer. But there was no need to. 

"Then you're wrong if that's what you desire. I have no hold over the will of your son. He does not desire to return to you. He never would." 

Below her, the Raven visibly shivered.

"He does not love you for what you did. For the way you raised him." She continued, "You raised your child in pain and fear, before he could even comprehend what they were. You of all have no right to tell me how to treat my subjects..."

The Raven turned away from facing her, seemingly trying to cover his ears. But it wasn't all. 

Jaden was staring at him intently, trying to spot a single bit of... conscience in him about his actions. But all that he saw was... 

"A knife!" the magpie cried out as a warning, as he saw the Raven reach for it under the cover of trying to turn away from Uliana. Not a second later, the Raven jolted up, painting a long scar across Uliana's abdomen. The white bird immediately retaliated by pushing him far back from herself. The two smaller birds immediately flew by her, helping her stand up and fly away from there for good. 

The Raven watched them leave, until the white armour that his son wore became but a faint little star in the sky, and then disappeared in the leaves.

The shadow birds gathered around, helping each other up and regenerating. 

One of them dared approach the Raven, who was too entranced to stand up still. 

"You did it, sir. You fought her off. It was so well done, sir, so clever of you to block Corvi from being detected by her-" 

The bird was interrupted when the Raven clenched his clawed hand in its chest, bringing it closer. 

"So clever?! You tell me where the hell did he go!" He threw the bird aside. 

Why wasn't Uliana sensing him was a mystery to the Raven himself. He rushed back to the hollow of the Big Tree, only to find it empty. 

The Raven sat down. How could that happen? Could it be that he didn't see it when someone had found his way to save Corvi, to rip him from the Raven's claws? 

No. No, the Raven knew his powers. It couldn't have happened, he would know. He listened into the force of life around... and sensed nothing. But it couldn't be...

"Where are you? Where the hell are you, Corvid? How dare you..." 

There was no reply. 

And then all was quiet. 

Then an awful idea crossed his mind. The Raven stood up and inspected the edges of the hollow. Then he flew up and looked below the tree. 

The tree grew in the middle of the pond they called home and source of life. 

It all came together quickly. 

The Raven dove down into the water fast. He kept using his wings to dive down deeper and deeper, faster and faster. The water was black, too black to see anything, but he still saw occasional bodies of the shadow birds who had met their unfortunate demise float by. 

The Raven made it to the very bottom of the pond, he felt what he needed as he landed - he grabbed up the moveless form and swam back up as fast as he could. 

On the surface, the birds were concerned to see their leader dive down, even if they knew that he was immune to any sort of damage the black waters could have given him. 

And then the Raven flew up with a splash that covered every bird nearby, as he clenched a soaked body in his claws. He flew to the first piece of ground he could find, and placed Corvi down. The pigeon's feathers had all turned black from prolonged exposure to the waters. The Raven now realised he knocked him down into the pond when he took off. 

Suddenly, looking down, the big black bird felt... something. A strange feeling in his chest, that he was not familiar with. But it hurt. And it hurt him by making him think. Something in his dark and broken mind went "You lost your son, and now you've lost this one. You lose everyone." And for some mysterious reason - it hurt when he thought of it. He couldn't tell why.  
The Raven lifted the small bird to sit up, and placed his ear to the middle of its torso, for the first time in a long time he was hoping for a miracle... 

And it happened. He heard a faint heartbeat. The birds around him sighed in relief, as if they had just listened to his heartbeat themselves. 

They did represent how their puppeteer felt after all. 

The Raven gave them orders to straighten the forces of guards. And to only come see him if the magpie they had seen today would come down, and for no other reason. 

Then he picked Corvi up into his hands, and flew up to the tree, but to a different hollow. 

It was located farther than they were before, higher above the water. From inside of it, the entrance was located much higher, making it impossible to fall out of that one on accident. 

Inside, it was filled with soft mossy stones and leaves. 

The Raven placed Corvi down into a makeshift nest filled with crumbled leaves, and sat beside him. He knew that the effect of the prolonged exposure to the black waters would fog his mind once he'd wake. And he decided that he'd be there to see that, and assure that he won't fall out again while he would be so vulnerable. Corvi seemed unharmed, just fully black like the Raven was now. 

While he waited, he walked towards the neatly placed rocks and moved two aside, picking up an old stitched doll from below them. It was very worn out by the time. Looking at it always reminded Raven of the times his young son would have nightmares, and would come to him seeking safety, then only fall asleep holding onto that doll while Raven would sit by his side. It was weird to think that Jaden was once the size of that doll, that now fit in Raven's single hand. 

The Raven was silent as he inspected it again after so many years. Then he spoke to himself, frowning.

"I wasn't wrong."

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...Temporarily.


	6. Chapter 5

Corvi yawned and stretched, feeling a little light headed after his prolonged nap. He folded his hands and looked up, and was met with two hollow eyes next to his own. 

"Hey." said the Raven, who laid down and tucked his hands behind his head, and crossed his legs, letting Corvi rest on top of him while he waited for his awakening.  "You come here often?" 

Something in Corvi's mind went alarm, and he jumped down from the nest both were resting in. On the ground, Corvi managed to get on his front fours, while he looked around the room nervously, looking for a place to hide at. 

The Raven stood up and sat down by his side, reaching his hand out, palm up and open. He waited. 

It was the effect of the black waters. Corvi was no better than a dog now. A very scared dog at that. He leaned closer cautiously, examining the reached hand. Then he retreated back. 

The Raven sighed, but didn't give up. There was always a plan B. It always worked with Jaden when he was cranky, had chances of working with Corvi too. The Raven grabbed a toy from the rocks, leaned against them and started inspecting it, as if he had suddenly forgotten that Corvi existed. 

The little pigeon took the given time and opportunity to explore his surroundings. They were very dark and empty. The rocks in the corner were covered in moss, and were starting to smell kind of nice... Corvi held onto his empty stomach. Then he slowly approached the Raven, as his stomach growled. 

The Raven wasn't surprised that he was hungry, considering for how long Corvi was out. But he kept all his attention concentrated on the little doll in his hands. 

The pigeon got louder, now waving his hands to receive some sort of attention. The Raven finally noticed his presence when Corvi held his hand by the sleeve. Already knowing what was up, the Raven nodded, before taking off and returning in a minute with a flask full of dark liquid, now stirred with something presumably edible.

The moss on the stones was starting to seem more inviting, when Corvi smelled the innards of the flask. He stuck his tongue out and moved towards the nearest wall, sitting down and curling up as if he just got mortally offended. 

The big dark bird wasn't playing games. He sat down by his side, reaching his free hand to grab Corvi's face, force his lips open, and put on a decent fight just to make him drink some of it. 

"Drink it up, I need you alive. Come on. You little shit, stop trying to bite me." Raven roared. "Ugh, you're acting like such a child." 

Corvi kept his expression sour, not really reacting to what he was being told. 

"Don't you comprehend?" The Raven withdrew his hand to gesture at him, "You're a grown bird. You've got to comprehend what I'm saying. Stop being so inconsolable. You're not a child, and even if you were... even if you were, you would have to understand." 

It was not accurate to compare the state Corvi was in to being a child, but Raven did wonder if there was a certain age at which a child would be as inconsolable and non comprehensive about things like he was now. 

"You have to obey me. That's the only way you'll live." He spoke again. "I don't care if I have to kill you. Life sucks. You have to- what are you doing?" 

what Corvi was doing was that he approached the Raven as he spoke, looking at him with fascination. 

"...I can kill you right here and now." The Raven broke the awkward silence. 

Corvi turned his head side to side, inspecting the Raven with curiosity, as if the little birdie had never seen him before.

"You're gonna be telling your friends you saw the Raven up close and lived, aren't'cha? If you even go back one day. Which you won't. You're going to stay here forever, and I will always hurt you. Such is life. Life hurts, get used to it. Now, you may hate me for it, but one day you will come to realise that I was preparing you for the true cold life out there." 

Raven had forgotten whom was he talking to. It suddenly seemed like not so long ago he spoke the same way with another bird who looked up to him. But it was a life time ago.

"He was just like you." Raven spoke quieter. "And then he was no more. And nevermore." 

Corvi perked up. It seemed he liked to hear Raven whisper. He had a much softer voice when he did that. He almost seemed... softer.

Without much hesitation or thought, which probably would have gotten him hurt severely under different circumstances, Corvi reached his hands out and hugged Raven. 

And then all was quiet. 

"Let go." 

The little pigeon kept holding on, not really comprehending where he was or whom was he holding, only knowing that it feelt right to do that. 

Raven was moveless and whispering. 

"Let go. Or I _will_ kill you." 

But nothing followed. Corvi felt strange shivering from Raven, then the big bird pushed him aside, making him fall to the floor. Raven covered his face, still twitching weirdly. Corvi wasn't sure what it meant, but it hurt to think he did something wrong again, so he whined apologetically. 

The Raven turned around and flew off fast. He couldn't face that again.

~ ~ ~ 

  
"I'm so damn done with all of you." 

"Virgi, language!" 

"Fuck you!" replied the little crow girl, "All you keep telling me is that we'll go get him, then we go, then we leave with a new promise to return for him later!"

Jaden held his face with his hand, sitting down on the branch next to Virgi. 

"You come there too. You see what happens. We don't get a choice. We can't just go and get Corvi and we can't defeat the Raven." 

"Well maybe we're not trying hard enough. I could have killed him the first time we went there... You threw my aim off on purpose!" 

"Why in a world would I do that?!" Jaden raised an elbow in defence. 

"I dunno, to save your dad!" 

"He's not a dad to me!" He raised his voice, "He's not... You don't get it. You never went through anything like I did. And you never will. You live your whole life on the softest pillows, given everything and loved by everyone, and you'll never know otherwise, and you dare complain?!" 

"Yes I damn do!" Virgi shouted back at him, "My best friend is trapped in hell and no one's doing anything effective!" 

"May be if you stopped being such a spoiled brat for a second you'd see that we all almost died trying to save him? Look around!"

The magpie threw his hands in the air, then grabbed the little crow up and turned her to look at the hollow in a tree, in which the warriors patched their wounds. Virgi slapped off his hands. 

"Then we're doing something wrong."

Jaden wanted to say more, but stopped in his track, moved his hand down his face, took a deep breath and seemingly counted to something in his mind. He spoke again in a slow and calmer tone. 

"Virgi, I'm sorry. I recognize that you're hurt. And that you're worried for your friend, and not for yourself. I'm sorry what I'm saying. We are all stressed here. We all want Corvi to be back safe and sound. So do I. And I am just as upset that there has been nothing we could have done to help him so far."

Virgi crossed her hands together, looking down below the trees. Her expression slowly changed from enraged to saddened. 

"...Sorry." 

"I get it. I wish there was a way..." 

Jaden stopped what he was saying mid way, as if he thought of something momentarily. But he quickly shook his head to escape it. The little crow didn't see it. But she put her hand on his shoulder, while avoiding eye contact. She felt embarrassed by her little rage quit. Little did she know Jaden also was trying to look away, suddenly haunted by the thoughts he wished he didn't realise. 

And then all was quiet. 

For a good while, they just sat together. Jaden took Virgi's hand in his gown softly. 

"Virgi?" 

"Yeah?"

Jaden still wasn't facing her. 

"Could you go and... check on Uliana? Ask her for... counselling. On... feelings. I care about you, and I think you need to vent some... to someone." 

"I can vent to you." 

"No, I mean... about me. Vent to her about me."

"But you're doing nothing wrong? You're being... much more reasonable than I am. I'm sorry." 

"It's okay, we both rage quit here... so could you... could you go and tell Uliana that I feel sorry, and that I've decided to do the right thing?"

Virgi raised her eyes at him in sudden curiosity. 

"I mean that I raged but then decided and switched to being reasonable? You know, I... want her to be proud of me, maybe, but I can't tell her that on my own, you know..." 

His awkward speech managed to make Virgi smile a little bit. 

"Yeah, sure. Honestly, if anyone deserves some praise - it's you. I'll be right back then." 

And with that, she took off to find Uliana. Jaden watched her fly away, farther and farther. Then he looked down.

  
~ ~ ~

The Raven returned to Corvi once he gathered the mental energy to. He landed by the edge of the hollow, looking at the little bird who was taking a nap in the nest, curled up and holding onto the little doll. 

It suddenly seemed very familiar. 

The Raven came closer, not making a single sound. He reached his hand towards the sleeping bird... but last moment clenched it into a fist and withdrew back. 

Corvi opened his eyes, it took him a minute to register the Raven staring at him intently. Then he visibly shrunk down, seemingly at a loss of any ideas as to how did he get there. But there was more mind in his eyes now. 

"Corvi?" 

The little bird opened up his mouth, but mixed up all the words, shivering in fear, "Yes, sir, Raven, uh... lord? King?" 

He covered his head quickly, bracing for a hit. 

"What's up with you." the Raven said, jumping up and sitting down in the nest next to him, "Seemed to like me more a hour ago."

Corvi only had very foggy idea of what has taken place previously. 

"I ... I wasn't really... thinking?" He was very confused, watching the Raven lay down inside the nest, and worse of all, tap a place right next to himself for Corvi to get at.

"Wasn't thinking, and wasn't fearing?" The Raven perched his head on his hand. 

Confused and scared to disobey again, Corvi sat where he was shown to sit at, unsure of what did the Raven want to hear now. 

"Yes, I mean, I didn't realise who... who were you, I just sort of... I mean, you were the only one here... sir?" 

The Raven grabbed him by the neck - much more softly than previous times, and momentarily, just to make Corvi lay down next to him, opposed to simply sitting there. 

Corvi felt absolutely uneasy, laying down and staring up at someone who was capable of damaging him severely. But at least the hand was no longer on his neck.

"Are you going to beat me up again?" The little pigeon's voice stuttered. 

The Raven frowned, having very little idea where was this coming from, but trying to blame it on the after effect of the liquid. 

"Why would I now?" 

"I'm, I'm not sure, but you did before." 

"You did wrong before." 

"But I can't know when I do wrong and right for you right away, you, you make the rules." 

The Raven withheld replying to that, and instead switched to raise up by the elbows. 

"Is that how it feels?" 

"What?" 

"Do you ... know why I beat you?" 

"Because I did wrong." 

"Did wrong what?" 

"Did wrong what you said." 

"No!" The Raven raised his voice. 

Corvi immediately covered his face. 

There was a long pause before the next thing was said. 

"I didn't hurt you because you disobeyed me. I hurt you because there are laws to follow in life, and you broke them. I was trying to fix you. Did you not notice?" 

Corvi perked from behind the safety of his raised hands. Two answers were on his mind to that. 

He could have said that he was wrong and the Raven was right, and apologise a million times, just like abuse always taught him to do. 

Or could have told him how it is. 

"Corvi." Raven whispered. It managed to push the pigeon towards the second option softly. 

"...No. You... I don't think  _ why  _ I'm hurt when I am. I just think I want it to stop hurting sooner. And I'm... willing to do and say anything for it." 

Raven sat up silently, looking absent minded. Something was opened to him, that he had no idea about previously. He contemplated something for a long time. Then, without turning, he said something so unreal, Corvi thought he hallucinated it rather than heard him say it. 

"Thank you."

The sanity was drifting back to the pigeon. He stayed laying down in the nest while Raven stood up and paced the room for a good while, with his hands behind his back. Seemingly he was deep in his thoughts. Then he stopped in his track, and turned his head towards the dark forest. 

The Raven opened his wings, taking off much more carefully that time, as he flew towards the place where he had just sensed someone enter his domain again. 

Little did he know that Corvi followed him, all until he landed down and heard the smaller bird awkwardly flop on the ground behind him. 

How did he fly if his wings were previously ripped of their feathers? 

Raven probably would have pondered on that more, but he had a more important matter at hand right now. 

Before him stood his son.


	7. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes you might just... not know how to react to things. And it can happen to anyone.   
Does Corvi dies though?

Corvi kept his head low, he was afraid to look his friend in the eyes. He was ashamed of all the trouble he had caused to so many birds. He never even imagined that so many could care about him. He still wasn't sure why they did.

Jaden was glad to see his friend okay, even if s little dyed, but he had other concerns at the moment. Looking at the Raven made him remember his childhood, made him remember where did all his pain, all the trust issues, all the self judgement issues, and all the paranoia root at. His fists were clenched, and he was terrified, but there was no going back from this. 

As for Raven, he knew there were a lot of things he wanted to say - things he wanted to ask - but seeing his son there, willingly before him, took all the words away from him. 

"I know what you want." Jaden began, his expression turning sour in anger, and sad in helplessness, "I will stay here with you if you let him go." 

He raised his eyes to look at his father after the words had been said. Jaden expected him to pull some evil scheme, so his main plan was to distract him for long enough for Corvi to fly away. 

Raven didn't know how to react at first. Part of him was hurt and offended that the only reason his son was willing to stay was a type of blackmail deal. But another part just wanted to see him. 

And that part was stronger.

Raven took a step forward, reaching his hand for his shoulder, but withdrew when he noticed that Jaden jolted back from him. It wasn't visible, but he could tell that his son wanted to cry. 

As for Corvi, he was watching silently, trying to read the emotions of the two birds reuniting. 

Raven thought of him for a second. Then he said in a soft whisper that he used before with Corvi, 

"Jaden." 

Jaden was taken aback by the softness of the voice that he didn't expect. He thought there would be sadistic laughter and evilness... He thought for sure there would be. 

But before any more words could even be said, the Raven was tackled down hard into the ground. 

Uliana hit him in the face, getting her white hands dirty, before she took off him. 

The Raven held his mouth open in shock, then turned to his son, 

"You brought them here!"

"I- I didn't, I swear!" Jaden tried to explain. He couldn't tell why did it suddenly matter that the Raven would believe him. But he felt bad to let him think he betrayed him. "I didn't bring- I came here alone! Why did you come here?!" 

"Why did you come here!!" Virgi turned the tables, "Did you think losing one friend wasn't enough for me?" 

Before he could reply to the little bird, Uliana took hold of Corvi. She pushed him towards the two birds, telling them to take him away, while she would distract the Raven. 

Virgi nodded immediately, clenching her friend and taking off quick. Jaden was slower to follow. 

"Traitor!" The Raven screamed at him. 

"I'm sorry!" Jaden said, feeling that he was a little kid again. It was a day he broke something. He was going to be hurt. He was sorry. And he was sorry now for breaking his trust.

As the two birds flew off with their mildly confused friend, Uliana fought the Raven, not holding back any of her means of fighting anymore, as she scarred and threw him around, occasionally using her powers on him. 

The Raven landed back on the ground, clenching the dirt with his claws. He looked up just in time to see the birds escape his domain. Corvi... he had lost him. 

"Jaden!" The Raven screamed loudly, causing his son to stop momentarily and look at him. 

He reached a hand out to him. Jaden looked confused at first. Then he shut his eyes closed. And the next moment he looked determined, as he flew away with his friends from the fight scene. 

The Raven looked around himself, completely confused. 

"What?! Wait, what?"

He didn't get to ponder for a long time, as Uliana tackled him, sending him flying a few feet away...

~ ~ ~

Corvi opened his eyes and then covered his face with his hands, as it's been a long while since he saw so much light around himself. Let alone in such a big room. When he tried to adapt his eyes to the light again, he saw someone looming above him. He squinted at them. But it was just Jaden looking down at him. Furthermore Corvi realised that he was lying down. But not on a pillow - on his friends knees. 

He tried to sit up, flustered a bit. But Jaden held him down by the shoulders, and kissed him on top of his head. 

"You're awake..." he said, lovingly. 

Corvi may have been dyed, but he felt a blush form on his cheeks, hidden by his new coloration. Speaking of it, he glanced at his hands, realising that it started to wear off at the tips, ever so faintly.

Corvi tried to raise up again, but Jaden hugged him tightly, not allowing him any sort of movement. 

That was surprising. But Corvi was gone for so long, he may have missed out on his absence making Jaden reconsider his feelings. Or maybe he just never noticed…

Be it one thing or another, Corvi felt uneasy for a different reason. 

"I need to sit up." 

After announcing it and seemingly getting a permission, Corvi sat on his white bed. It wasn't his bed, it was a nursery bed. One of the many. But they were alone in the wide and brightly lit room. 

"What happened?" He asked, scratching the back of his head.

"We got you to safety." 

"No, I get that. What happened to Raven?"

Jaden stared absently before shrugging. "Eh. Last time saw him Uliana was kicking his ass." 

Corvi jolted up on his legs, almost losing his balance. 

"I need to go back." 

The magpie turned his head in confusion at his words. 

"I know how it sounds, but... I need to go back to see your dad." Corvi sat down on the floor while Jaden still sat on the bed, and took his hands in his own. "I know it may sound like I was brainwashed or something... But I wasn't. I've been around Raven for long enough that I found... something humane in him. I don't think he'd all that bad. There's good in him, it just has to be brought up, somehow... I'm sorry, I imagine it's not nice for you to hear this about someone who had hurt you so much, when you couldn't even tell why." 

Jaden closed his eyes, as if he was reminded of a great pain just now. 

"Yeah. You're right. I had no idea... But I have idea now! I think he sucks! Why would you... uh, care for him? If you even..."

"Care? Yeah. I guess I do care about him. I'm sorry Jaden." Corvi stood up and headed out, "I have to go back and save your dad." 

"Wait." Jaden paused him again. He took Corvi's hand in his own, "...Who needs to see the good in that sadistic black bird, when we can have each other? Let's forget it all and be together. Happily ever after...." Jaden brought Corvi in for a hug around his waist as he spoke.

Corvi's cheeks turned red momentarily. But then he shoved Jaden off carefully.

"Call me a weirdo, call me broken, call me whatever you will... But I think I like your dad. And there's nothing I can do about it. So even if I... have to go against you - I'm going back there. And I'm going to help him. Or at least be by his side."

Jaden looked at him with adoration, smiling through the whole speech. Then he suddenly brought Corvi closer, twirling around and holding him just above the ground as if they danced. And then Jaden kissed him, kissed him on the lips, deeply and skillfully, savouring the taste, marking his property... 

Corvi had to kick him to push him away, "Dude, I told you. I can't. No offense, just... That'd be weird." 

"Oh, Corvi..." Jaden laughed softly, still not letting go of his hands, and keeping his eyes closed with a pleased smile on his face, as he spoke again,   
"You're such a fucking idiot." 

Jaden opened his eyes. 

They were pure white.   
  


~ ~ ~ 

  
"Wait, please, no! I'm not the Raven, I swear!" The Raven said as he laid beaten up on the ground. 

"You're a bad actor, Raven." Uliana frowned above him, getting ready for another attack. 

"I'm not! He did something, and I was here. It's me, Jaden! I wish you no harm! Corvi and Virgi are in danger now if I'm here, he's... he's probably there!" 

Uliana continued to gather her energy for another hit.

"I swear! I... you found me when I was trying to steal the food from you! You told me I was welcome to stay, no matter where I came from or where my roots were at..."

Uliana hesitated. She let go of the energy, and kneeled down to take a better look. 

"The Raven" laid on the ground, defeated and powerless, shivering in fear, not emitting any sort of dark energy. And his eyes were coloured in. 

"It's you." Uliana finally concluded vaguely. "But then, who is..." 

"He probably is." 

"We need to go back and save him." 

"Wait." "The Raven" sat up, looking up at her, "May I... I probably can't, but if I could, I would... ask you for one little favour, while I am... here like this." 

"What is it, Jaden?"    
  


~ ~ ~

  
"Jaden" and Corvi skipped through the corridors of the med bay together. They half hands and occasionally spun each other around, laughing and kissing. From the side they almost looked like a happy couple. 

"How did you do that?" Corvi asked with fascination. 

"I am capable of many things. Some you don't even guess I can do..." 

"Like that time you healed me." Corvi giggled and smiled wide, "It was you, wasn't it?" 

"Maybe so." 

"It was you, because you care..." 

"Halt. I only cared to keep you alive to torment you more." 

"Ah-ah, you care about me, I know it." 

Corvi felt strangely easier to talk to Raven when he was seemingly his height and age, even if he wasn't. The idea of possibly reaching out to him even made Corvi forget to ponder on Jaden's own whereabouts. 

"You have some weird twisted taste if you're excited about me even theoretically caring about you." 

"Thanks. Abuse does that." Corvi said in a tone he would usually try to make fun of his pained life. "I've seen worse. You're really not as bad as them. I mean, gosh that came across offensive, sorry. I meant..."

"Did I abuse you?" "Jaden" suddenly asked in a serious tone.

Corvi waved his hand horizontally, "Eh, I mean? I've been through worse. They'd always abuse me mentally, tell me I was bad and wrong at it all, make me feel worthless... you just kinda beat me up a few times. You know, there are people who... like that, you know?.." 

The Raven didn't catch on his hint. 

"Let's go." He said. He wasn't sure what he was going to do, but he was sure that he had to fix mistakes that he had done ages ago. 

They walked further, eventually exiting the medical center, and entering the branches of the city of the light. "Jaden" looked around with fascination. He had never been there before. He wasn't used to actually seeing things. He held Corvi's hand, looking for a safe way back below. 

And then "Jaden" jumped back on their branch, when a shadow loomed over the two lovebirds, and Uliana greeted them. 

"Corvi, Jaden. I have good news." 

Something rustled in the bushes behind them. But when the two glanced back they only saw Virgi approach the company from behind. She giggled and hugged Corvi closely. 

"Sorry. I wanted to do this earlier, but you guys were making out so much, didn't mean to interrupt you." She buried her face in Corvi's feathers, "I missed you..." 

Uliana looked mortified, but she allowed for the sentimental moment before she spoke on. 

"I have good news for the three of you." 

The birds looked at her, expectantly.

"The Raven is no more."

  
The three birds stared in shock. Corvi's first emotion was sadness that he couldn't help him after all. But then he looked at Jaden and remembered. 

"I defeated him for good. He is no more, and will never return. The Raven is nevermore." 

Virgi perked up, ready to ask a question or make a remark, but something happened. Uliana was suddenly thrown back onto another tree, pushed there by "Jaden". 

"What have you done!!" He screamed, scratching and kicking her as he could. Uliana tried to ignore if at first. But then she thought that he was being... a little too powerful. She started trying to evade his attacks, but "Jaden" grabbed her by her pretty tail, spun around, and threw towards the walls of the med bay. 

Virgi brought Corvi back to reality when she tugged at him. 

"What's going on." She asked in a completely scared voice, "Why is Jaden... did he... is that because of his dad, I didn't know he was capable of doing this to her."

"He is not..." Corvi replied, paralyzed by a dawning realization that Jaden was gone. 

Uliana gathered her powers and created a bolt of the light, firing it at Jaden. It seemed to hit the target. But the target didn't seem to care. "Jaden" picked up a sharp thorn from a flower that grew nearby and rushed at her. 

Meanwhile below, the bushes behind the two small birds rustled again. Virgi looked back, then held onto Corvi much more tighter, scared for her life. 

"The Raven!" She screamed. 

"No, don't fear, I'm not the Raven. It's me, Jaden. He switched us around." 

"What?" Asked the little crow, completely confused by now. "But she just said... she just said the Raven died." She stayed silent about remembering the two make out minutes ago.

"I asked her to say that. To know what would he... do." "The Raven" looked up, just in time to see "Jaden" hold Uliana down with his claw, and aim a sharp thorn at her neck.

He needed to warn her, he needed to distract him, he needed stop it all fast, but there was so much to be said to explain it and so little time, and Jaden panicked so much, that he limited with a single word to defuse the situation instantly, 

"Dad!" 

"Jaden" froze above Uliana, a sharp thorn inches from her neck. He looked back down, seeing whom he knew to be his son, safe and sound. He reached his hand out and clenched his fist, causing both birds to collapse momentarily. 

Uliana held onto her neck and hands, catching her breath. Never had she faced such fierceness from the Raven. She was shocked. 

Corvi guessed it was them switching back, so he gently pushed Virgi aside and sat next to the Raven to help him up. 

He wasn't wrong.

But he was surprised. 

The Raven was crying. And it didn't come from Jaden, no, those were his own tears. 

Jaden rubbed the back of his head, then his eyes, adjusting his vision again, and finally looking up to see Corvi seemingly comforting his dad. 

But it was short lived. 

The Raven screamed into the air and pushed Corvi aside, suddenly taking off and diving back into the abyss of darkness from whence he came. 

And then all was quiet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huh? I guess not.


	8. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, fine, fine.  
Corvi doesn't die.

Corvi noticed that the longer he spent in the world of the light - the more the dark colouration drained from him. He could no longer fly once again, and he wondered why, but the sight of his featherless wings was a good explanation. No one really believed him when he said that he flew back in the dark domain for some reason. 

No one, spare for Jaden. He had asked Corvi to talk about things he went through down there, but only if he felt comfortable doing so. Unlike him, Virgi was reluctant to ask any questions, still haunted by the images of Corvi and Jaden making out, and her later realisation that it wasn't Jaden that he was kissing. And Corvi seemed perfectly aware of that. 

Corvi didn't elaborate on the pain that excited to him. But he did take some private time to tell Jaden about the reasons he thought his dad needed help. 

"I'm sorry, I keep thinking I already told you all that. But I think there's good in him." 

"Well, someone has to see it, if not his own son." Jaden crossed his arms, perching over a branch. 

"He brought me back to life. Could have made a mindless puppet out of me, but instead he just brought me back." 

"He is known to do that. Well, it's supposed to be his secret anyways." 

"I wonder if Uliana knows of it. Or... can do it too?" 

"I doubt we would still have so many shadow birds if she could." 

Corvi sighed, "You're right."

There was a prolonged silence between them. Neither had anything to add at the moment. Although Jaden did reach his hand out, just for Corvi to sit next to him and let his friend hold him close. 

They hugged. 

"...I missed you." 

"I'm sorry." 

"It's not your fault." 

"No, I mean, I'm sorry I can't say the same." Corvi expected the hug to stop at his words. But it didn't, "When I was there... I wasn't thinking of my life here. I was just... there. I was rethinking the abuse I went through. I was getting killed and brought back to life. I gave up expecting you guys to come save me so many times." 

"Of course we came to help you. That's what friends do." 

"Even when I turned you down so many times..." 

"Hey. You're our friend, we knew there was good in you waiting to come out again." 

"I'm glad... And that's how I feel about him too." 

Now Jaden made a sour expression, moving to let go but thinking against that for now. 

"I think he started to see that he was wrong to do what he did to you." 

"Well damn, it's not going to give me years of my life back." 

"But he wants to do better now. You believe it too. Otherwise, why'd you test him like you did?" 

"I don't know, out of curiosity..." Jaden looked away. 

"He cares about you."

"What are you going to do now?" The magpie asked, withdrawing his hands from the hug. 

"Go back and try to console him." 

"What?" Jaden jumped up in surprise. 

"What?!" Virgi almost jumped up from her hiding spot, from which she was eavesdropping on the two. 

"I'm not going to get hurt this time. I just want to talk to him." 

"He's not going to ask what do you want or not." 

"You don't know him!" Corvi raised his voice, but immediately covered his mouth, realising whom he'd just say that to.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I... that came out wrong, I'm sorry. You don't know him now is what I meant. He changed." 

Jaden opened his mouth to reply something, but nothing came out. He just glared at Corvi. He wanted to tell him a lot about those words. 

_ Do you think I don't know the man who abused me my whole life? _

But decided against dealing with it right now. He didn't want to end up saying some regrettable things.

"Corvi. Please. Just go." 

The pigeon wanted to add more, but realised nothing could make it better, and it was best to let that cool down for the time being. He walked away, as he couldn't fly.

Jaden leaned on another branch, looking down. Corvi just didn't know... the magpie covered his face, trying not to cry. More than anything he wanted to believe that there was at least one redeeming quality in the Raven. He looked up. He just really wanted to have a single safe parental figure.   
  


~ ~ ~

  
A while later Corvi somehow managed to climb down from a tree to the ground. And from there he simply walked down until he reached the dark domains. 

His eyes adjusted quicker that time, and he knew precisely where the things were at. All the shadow birds that he passed by were weeping. 

Corvi made it to the open field where it all began. In the middle, perched over a rock and deep in his thoughts, he found Raven. 

"I know you're here." Said the Raven, "Go away."

"I didn't come here to go away. I just want to talk." 

"Well I don't. There we have it." Raven turned to face him halfway, "There's nothing to be said here. I fucked up big time, ages ago, and nothing now can fix that." 

He returned to holding his head with his hands, while Corvi carefully inched closer. 

"I don't think you're hopeless. That's why I came here." 

"You're wrong." 

"Huh?!"

The Raven flew up and landed next to him. 

"You're just used to being attracted to pain. That's what your abuse taught you. Do you think I didn't notice? You fool," he started to laugh strangely, "I gave my own son the same pain." 

Raven laughed and laughed, grabbing onto his head and seemingly trying to pull his feathers out,   
"All that time I wanted him to see the world from my eyes, I never thought to look at myself through his own!" 

"But you think so now! And you've shown that you can care. I've seen it. I've felt it... And I saw it again when you almost killed Uliana, because you thought she killed your son." 

The big bird roared. Corvi felt that he was on the right track.

"You can still fix it all. I can help it. I can help you two arrange a meeting, and maybe, maybe have some topics to discuss together. You can have one more chance with him!" 

"You annoying little bird. How many times do I have to tell you? I can not. There is nothing I can ever make up to him. And I'm not about to discuss this with you. Go away. Go back to your precious Uliana and... bask in the sunlight. Just go.” 

Corvi attempted to use his special tactic. He went to the eye of the storm for the safety of it. He tried to hug Raven. 

The big bird pushed him aside, into the dirt. 

"Go away." 

_ That must have been how they felt, _ Corvi pondered, prepping his head with one hand and tapping the ground. He suddenly realised how does refusing help looks from aside. 

"I just want to help you. I know there's good in you, just have to bring it out somehow... I'll find a way to reconnect you with your son." 

Having said that, Corvi stood just a bit longer, waiting for a sign of being heard. But there was none. So the bird slowly walked his way back. 

The Raven stayed alone, perching over a rock in the middle of the area, chanting about never seeing his son again, nevermore…   
  


~ ~ ~

  
Corvi made it back to his friends, notably to Virgi standing with her arms crossed and Jaden acting like he had nothing to do with anything around. 

"You went to see him again." Pouted the little crow, "What if he had captured you again?!" 

"He wouldn't have. Don't worry."

"I'm not buying it." The crow kept her hands crossed. 

Jaden looked up. He was torn between asking how it went, and not showing interest. And Corvi caught on that.

"He pushed me away himself. Goodness, I had no idea that's how it felt... I'm so sorry to both of you." 

"About time!" 

"Sorry, Virgi. I really..." 

He was cut off mid sentence, when Uliana appeared out of the light. 

"Corvi. Follow me." 

Without much options, Corvi followed Uliana, branch by branch. His friends walked behind him, until Jaden eventually picked him up and carried after the bird of the light.

They made it to her castle of clouds. Corvi wished he could turn back now, he hated that place since he was a child. Uliana walked the long halls, making sure her children were catching up. They walked by many statues of the guardian birds. 

Corvi shivered, remembering the ways they had always talked to him. 

"You're the worst."

"How could you?" 

"You're an imbecile." 

"This is all your fault." 

Corvi hated the abuse that broke him. 

Uliana reached the end of the hallway, and turned to face the three friends, calling Corvi to come closer. The pigeon stepped ahead, kneeling down before her. 

"I'm aware you went back to the devil." Announced the big white bird, "That was unacceptable. We has just saved you from there - birds almost laid their lives, just for you to walk back there again."

"Ma'am, I swear it wasn't like that... I knew that the Raven wouldn't hurt me anymore. I just wanted to..."

"It matters not." Uliana raised her hand, "I have neglected to take care of your state for a long time, and paid the price. But now." She placed her hand on her belt. "I will heal you now." 

Before the birds could react, she pulled out a knife and stabbed Corvi in the neck with it, holding his head in place while he bled. The blood didn't spoil the white floor of her castle. It just evaporated. 

The two other birds stood paralyzed in shock. 

Uliana then placed her hand on Corvi's forehead, chanting something. Suddenly the black waters faded from his body. It became pure white that time. And frozen in a kneeling pose, like a statue, just like the ones that lined the walls.

Uliana took a step back, admiring her work.

In a few minutes, sense finally caught up to the two birds. 

Virgi held onto her face in fear, tears streaming down it, "What have you done?!"

"I healed him. He will want to die no more. He is safe now."

"He's not himself now!" Virgi screamed, the stress of the past days finally breaking her fragile mind. 

"You are spoiled and ungrateful, child. Look at him. Now he is perfect. Now he will never want to see the devil again. Now he will be safe." 

The little crow closed her eyes, she kept crying. 

"You are inconsolable, child. Perhaps you need to be fixed too?"

"No!!" Virgi jumped back, then she ran from there as fast as she could. 

Jaden stayed just for a bit longer, coming to take a closer look at his friend. Corvi tracked him with his eyes, but that was all he was capable of now. His mouth seemed to move a little bit. 

Jaden looked at him with guilt and sorrow. Then he slowly walked away. 

He didn't tell Uliana, or anyone, where he was heading. He just tried to seem okay with it all. When secrets are all that you have, you learn to hide them well. When the lies are all that you're good at - no one can ever know about that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sike!  
And yes, I had to make him say Nevermore at some point.


	9. The Talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is so far from what I originally wanted this tale to be.   
Is it better?

The Raven was still perched above the very same rock, when he heard footsteps approach him. He had no doubt who's footsteps were those and what they wanted to tell him. 

"I know what you're going to say." He began first, not turning his head towards the intruder. "That there's hope if I put efforts. It's not about what I do now. It's about what Jaden wants now. The world broke me before, and I wanted to prevent that from happening to him too. But in the process I broke him myself... If I was him, I'd never want to see me again either." 

"I'm not you." Jaden said behind him. 

The big bird turned around, quite surprised, but without a single idea of what was to come from this talk. But his son didn't prepare for this, not mentally, not in any way, he was not ready to discuss that just yet. So he jumped straight to his point,

"Corvi is in danger. Uliana converted him into a mindless light puppet." 

The Raven's wings opened up as he tensed at the news, reaching a menacing size that Jaden had forgotten the sight of over the years. 

"What do you think I can do about it?" Raven asked, stepping down and approaching his son. 

"You can talk to her. You're the only one on her level. All of us are her stupid children." Jaden looked down. "And... I have no doubt that if you wanted to - you could outpower her. I've seen it." 

"Corvi told me it was your idea. To test me." 

"Yes, I'm..." He almost said he was sorry, "Wanted to know. What would it be like."

"She must be doing a damn shitty job if every second bird of the light ponders on death." 

Jaden only nodded quietly at that. 

"We need your help." 

The Raven put his hands together behind his back, looking away with a sudden thought.

"I need you." The magpie whispered the last word not above the breath. 

"I will help him. But," the Raven came closer to his son, "On one clarification. I do not want you to think that you have to pay for this by coming here or talking to me, if you don't want to. I'll just do it. That's all." 

Jaden was taken aback by that idea. He felt just the smallest bit of relief. His mental walls were high and made of tough concrete, at this point of his life it was almost impossible for him to find the feeling of security. But he did appreciate the clarification. 

He nodded instead of thanking him. 

Then the two birds set off.    
  


~ ~ ~

Proud of her collection, Uliana walked past the statues of those she held dear. They were all perfect. They were all happy. They were all grateful. She was deep in her thoughts of what a wonderful ruler she was to her subjects, when she felt a dark presence enter her domain. She turned around, getting into a fighting stance before the Raven. She stood right next to Corvi as she did so. The Raven stood by his son. 

"How dare you enter my castle, let alone my domain, you devil?" 

"I've come with no fight in mind." Raven held his hands up, exposed and non threatening, "I came to talk."

"I don't believe you. There is nothing to be said between us." 

"May be so. I've come to talk to Corvi." 

Uliana relaxed her stance, crossing her arms on her chest. 

"He is listening." 

"He is not." 

Jaden was sincerely surprised to see his dad maintain such a calm tone in a talk that would otherwise already transpire into a fight. In her turn, Uliana was looking less balanced. 

"You turned him into a mindless puppet, no better than I did with your children in my domain. This is not Corvi. This is his shadow. An empty shell." 

"I made him perfect." She insisted. "He no longer wants to die."

"I understand where this is coming from. Because I've done the same thing. I wanted to raise my kid into the perfect vision I had of him... I never stopped to see that he has long ago grown into his own person. All I did was dismiss any of his personality that I didn't want in him. I should not have." He glanced back at his son for a minute, "Had I succeeded in what I thought was right for him - I'd just have a mindless puppet. But a different one from my shadow minions. I'd just have an empty husk that I trained to be perfect by my standards. ... And that's what you have now."

Uliana couldn't find an argument for a solid minute to this, "Corvi is not a mindless husk, how dare you. He has his own personality." 

"The personality you forced onto him. The damage your servants inflicted. I may have beaten my son. But his body's scars are long gone. It's the scars on his heart that will never fade away. And you have given your child the same ones. The mental scars. You're just like me." 

"I'm nothing like you!" Uliana opened her wings in tension, "And I'm more than you could ever amount for! And all of my children would have been perfect, was it not for you, you damn raven!" 

"Don't damn your own kind. You may be snow white, but you're a raven just like me, and nothing will take that away from you." 

The white Raven stomped her claw in anger.

"What do you know about it? Will you tell me how to be a "better" raven then?"

"See, that's the problem we both had. We both think we know how to be perfect." Raven shrugged, "That's just wrong. We are but birds just like the others. We can't decide what is best for others. ... We can only help them grow into the people they want to be. Not the ones we want to make of them."

The white bird glanced at her most recent statue. Her breathing was getting a little heavier, so she tried to calm herself. 

"I didn't come here to lecture you. I came because I have hurt... a lot of birds. ... And I want to do better. Uliana, I will set your children free of my curse. I ask for nothing in return for that. I just ask you to let me apologise to the one I have hurt the most recently. To Corvi. I will set the others free, no matter what you say now." 

And then all was quiet. 

Jaden looked at the two birds in the room, trying to read what went on in their minds. But he just could not. He did hold onto his own hands, giving himself a hug when no one else did. He did not expect anything of what Raven had said. He did not expect his dad to suddenly gain eyesight, after all those years... 

Uliana stepped closer to the little kneeling statue and put her hand on its forehead. The white drained down, and Corvi collapsed forward, grey once again.

Raven slowly came closer and sat down next to him. There was a lot to be said, and he probably had a lot of time for it. But no words came to his mind as he looked at the poor and wounded bird. Not even a simple "I'm sorry" could find its way into his voice. 

Corvi had heard everything. He was weakened, and needed a bit of help to even sit up, but he managed to move closer and hold onto Raven. 

The big scary bird did not push him away this time. He was unfamiliar with the action, but he tried to hug the little bird back.

"I'm sorry." He finally muttered. "And thank you. You made me see."

With that, Raven let go carefully, and stood back up. He exchanged silent look with Uliana, and started to walk away from there, not turning his head. 

"Uliana." A voice broke the silence. "Thank you for your hospitality. But I'm going to live with my dad now. I chose so. Goodbye." 

Raven stopped in his track, his mind unable to comprehend what was just said by the magpie. But next moment his son was by his side. 

He didn't know how to react to this. 

"I don't know how to react to this." 

"You don't have to know everything. No bird can know everything." 

Jaden smiled at him. 

Meanwhile Corvi managed to stand. He turned to speak to his greatest tormentor, "Thank you for the hospitality, Uliana. But I'm going to follow my best friend. Goodbye." 

Upon hearing that, Jaden immediately flew back and picked his friend up, flying off and following his dad away from there. 

Uliana slowly walked after them, towards the balcony of her castle. As the dark birds took off, she saw the third one sitting on the bars, sadly. Looking up into the sky, where the birds soared happily, before diving down into the dark. 

"Virgi. At least you stayed here." Uliana said, reaching her hand to pet her on the head. 

But Virgi evaded her touch. 

"I'm not a good child. I'm ungrateful, inconsolable, spoiled. I'm not a good person." 

"You can learn to be better." Uliana smiled at her. "I can show you how. I only need you to obey me undoubtedly." 

Virgi finally looked at her. Lines of dried tears compiled the expression of utter hatred. 

"Goodbye." 

She took off, diving after her friends into the dark of the night. 

And then all was quiet.   
  


~ ~ ~

The magpie landed next to his friends in their hollow, placing down a good amount of small leaves that he had collected. 

"Who's ready to play?" He said cheerfully and loudly. 

His pigeon friend put a finger to his lips and hushed, pointing at the nest in the farther side, "Raven is trying to sleep. We'll play though."

"Trying is an exaggeration." Replied Raven. "I can't sleep. ... What are you three up to?" 

"Oh, uhm, just a silly little game..." Jaden sat down on the floor, taking a large leaf and seemingly measuring something. "Nothing special... I came up with it." 

Raven sat up in the nest, visibly ready to listen. 

"Well, we take some leaves and put them into a bowl, then blindly pull one out. The one who pulls out the biggest one wins."

"Not to brag, but I'm known as a champion at this." Commented Virgi. 

"That's... very creative." Raven said, approaching the circle of friends, "Do you suppose I could play too?" 

"I thought you'd be tired by now, you've had so many shadow birds to... undo lately."

"Eh, I couldn't be too tired to spend time with you." Raven smiled at his son, now standing next to him, even though he yawned while he was it. 

Jaden's eyes sparkled up, and he hugged his dad, feeling safe when he was hugged back. 

The gang started to mix up leaves and pull them out of a makeshift bowl, when another bird landed on the entrance to their hollow. 

"Sir! I'm sorry, but you need to see this!"  
Every bird got concerned for a short while. But the big news were visible from the hollow itself, as the bird pointed up at it. 

So many birds had flown back and forth through the dark leaves, that they had fallen off, and the dark domain was now lit up with the warm sunlight. 

Corvi approached the edge of the hollow, looking down to see the mysterious dark liquid. But he only saw a clean pond down below, filled with various water lillies and the cleanest water he had ever seen.

"I see it. And it's beautiful." A soft smile on Raven's face was replaced with a frown suddenly. He turned to his son and added quieter. "I've never seen anything around myself, blinded by own standards and expectations. I never saw you for who you were. I'm sorry." 

"I know. And I forgive you. I'm just glad you can see now." 

"Would you like to play with us?" Virgi invited the random bird in. 

The bird agreed, a little confused, but with a cheerful spirit. 

Everyone sat back down into a circle. 

And then all around was filled with sounds of happiness and love.

The end.


End file.
